Les Ondines by Claire Shalhope | One Poem Only

One Poem Only · Apr 16, 2026 · 2m

A daily reading from One Poem Only—a quiet space for a single poem, read aloud.

Les Ondines

Claire Shalhope

I devote myself

into secret gardens

Where grey stone

is covered in soft ivy

that are full of whispers

of your demurral

Fleshy moss that sits

beneath my toes,

feeds my woes,

and fumbles

with our inhibitions

The scarlet rose thorns

may prick my thumb,

But you'll oblige

to taste my blood

How senseless am I

to become insouciant

As the sun's beams

golden light of my

self-condemnation

so I carve our initials into the old oak

But a Fortnight ago,

all our woven troves

and glances piercing

each…